Lt. Gen. Steve Townsend added that it was an "unintentional accident of war" if the assessment is correct

Receive the latest national-international updates in your inbox

In this Friday, March 24, 2017, file photo, civil protection rescue teams work on the debris of a destroyed house to recover the body of people killed during fighting between Iraqi security forces and Islamic State militants on the western side of Mosul, Iraq. Iraqis in the northern city of Mosul were still burying their dead after a U.S. airstrike allegedly killed more than 100 people the previous week, and rights groups expressed alarm over a recent spike in civilian deaths. Iraqi officials have defended their conduct in the war against the Islamic State group, and their advice to civilians to shelter in place as U.S.-backed forces seek to drive the extremists from their last urban stronghold in the country.

The top American general in Mosul said Tuesday that an initial assesment of a March 17 U.S. airstrike shows America "probably had a role" in the deaths of civilians in a nearby building, NBC News reported.

Lt. Gen. Steve Townsend said there is "at least a fair chance" that American forces led to the deaths. Unconfirmed reports suggest the death toll ranges from 100 to 200 people.

Townsend added that it was an "unintentional accident of war" if the assessment is correct.

However, Townsend argued that the strike used munition that should not have collapsed the nearby building. He said the Iraqis believe ISIS gathered the civilians and placed them there.